Statement from UB President Satish K. Tripathi Regarding the Appointment of Interim Provost Stenger as Binghamton President

University at Buffalo President Satish K. Tripathi has issued a
statement regarding the appointment of Interim Provost Harvey
Stenger as the next president of Binghamton University.

Dear University Community:

I am writing to share a very important announcement regarding
our university and SUNY communities.

This afternoon, upon the recommendation of SUNY Chancellor Nancy
Zimpher, the SUNY Board of Trustees approved the appointment of our
own Dr. Harvey Stenger as the next president of Binghamton
University, effective Jan. 1, 2012. While he will be missed
tremendously by our entire university community, this prestigious
appointment is richly deserved recognition of his remarkable vision
and the depth and breadth of his leadership and expertise. These
are all qualities that we have come to know very well during
Harvey's service at UB, and I am confident that they will
distinguish him as an exceptional president at our sister SUNY
institution.

As you know, Harvey has been serving with great distinction and
dedication as interim provost and executive vice president for
academic affairs since April 2011. Under his leadership, UB's
academic enterprise continues to make impressive strides forward as
we pursue our long-range institutional vision of excellence. I am
deeply grateful for Harvey's wise counsel, clarity of vision, and
impressive leadership -- both throughout his outstanding tenure as
dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences from
2006-2011, and in his most recent capacity as interim provost.
While I am very sorry to see him leave UB, I am thrilled to
continue working with him as a presidential colleague at our fellow
university center at Binghamton. I know I am joined by all of
Harvey's colleagues and friends at UB in expressing my heartfelt
thanks for his exemplary contributions over the years, and my
warmest wishes for every success in this important new leadership
role.

As UB continues its international search for our next provost
and executive vice president for academic affairs, Harvey's
leadership has left us very well positioned to build on our strong
academic foundation. The work of the Provost Search Committee is
progressing well, and we continue to anticipate that we will
conclude this search by the spring semester to allow the new
provost to be in place starting summer 2012.

In the meantime, I am pleased to announce that Dr. Bruce McCombe
has agreed to serve as interim provost and executive vice president
for academic affairs throughout this transitional period. Bruce has
played an integral leadership role in our academic community, as
illustrated through his outstanding contributions to our faculty as
SUNY Distinguished Professor in the Department of Physics and
through his exemplary service in a number of administrative
leadership roles -- including his role as dean of the College of
Arts and Sciences from 2006-11 and his service as dean of the
Graduate School and vice provost for graduate education from
2005-06. I am grateful for his willingness to serve in this
important leadership role on an interim basis.

I look forward to working with Interim Provost McCombe -- and
with our entire university community -- to continue our forward
momentum as UB moves further up the ranks of the nation's leading
research universities.